Balancing act

Throughout Cindy Crowe’s life, she said she wouldn’t get involved in politics. That changed when she had a vision telling her to run for city council.

Crowe, 50, attended the political forum at the Lakehead Labour Centre on Saturday. The panel, made up of politicians, set out to give tips for women and equity groups wanting to get more involved in politics.

"I hope to learn from this workshop," said Crowe, a member of the Lake Helen First Nation community near Nipigon. "I’m looking for some guidance. This is going to be a high learning curve for me."

Crowe said she avoided politics because she felt she didn’t have a good understanding how it worked. However, she has learned a lot by working as a volunteer in remote Northern Communities including Nishnawbe Aski Nation for more than 20 years.

Crowe said she had a dream about a celebrity telling the public she was running for city council. She knew then that she had to put her name into the race.

"I’m learning on the job," she said. "I want to do well. I want to do well at this task and I want to honour the vision."

Crowe said she wants to push the Waabi-ma’iingan (grey wolf) traditional teaching lodge initiative forward. The lodge mandate is to rebuild cultural and spiritual connections within the four nations. She believes the only way to do it effectively is on city council.

Mayor of Schreiber Madge Richardson shared her advice and experiences as one of the panelists. She gave Crowe two pieces of advice: don’t to take things personally and believe in yourself.

"It is a balancing act," Richardson said. "It’s just one more hat you wear. You’re still a parent, a worker, a colleague, a friend and you could be a councilor or a mayor. It’s a balance so you still have energy to do it tomorrow."

Richardson said women might not go into politics as much because they see themselves as peacekeepers and try to keep everyone happy.

A lot of time, effort and energy are involved in politics, she said. Being the first female mayor of Schreiber, she realized politics could be a thankless job. Richards thinks people are harsher when dealing with women.

"They are a bit more judgmental on how you talk and how you present yourself," she said. "When you’re put in a position of authority I don’t think they give women as much slack as they may do for someone dressed in a suit."

More than 30 people showed up to the workshop. Melanie Kelso, president of the Thunder Bay and District Labour Council, said women and equity groups can get involved in many ways from municipal politics to band council.

"Women and equity groups aren’t visible on any level where there are elected officials," Kelso said. "That’s within unions, community groups and municipal, provincial and federal politics. Half our population (in Thunder Bay) is women and that is not reflected by our city council."

Kelso said women still face issues when entering politics. Women are traditionally seen as the caregivers and don’t have as many networking opportunities as men.

Kelso said women don’t need to be career drive to get into politics but community driven. Kelso added candidate training will be held sometime in March.